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Berlin Process Overview of the Progress by the Six Western Balkans Countries Since London and Poznań Summits

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Berlin Process Overview of the Progress by the Six Western Balkans Countries Since London and Poznań Summits THE BALKAN FORUM Berlin Process Overview of the progress by the six Western Balkans countries since London and Poznań Summits August 2020 Berlin Process: Overview of the progress by the six Western Balkans countries since London and Poznan’ Summits August 2020 ACRONYMS C2C Citizen-to-citizen CDI Cooperation and Development Institute CEFTA Central European Free Trade Agreement CSO Civil Society Organisation EBRD European Bank for Reconstruction and Development EC European Commission EU European Union FDI Foreign direct investment IMF International Monetary Fund LIP Large Infrastructure Project OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development P2P People-to-people RCC Regional Cooperation Council RYCO Regional Youth Cooperation Office SEE South-east Europe SME Small & Medium Enterprises UNEP MGCY United Nations Environmental Program Major Group for Children and Youth V4 Visegrad Group WED World Environment Day WB/WB6 Western Balkans; Western Balkan Six (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia) WBIF Western Balkans Investment Framework WBYCP Western Balkans Youth Cooperation Platform CONTENTS Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................5 1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................7 Setting the research .........................................................................................................................7 2. Berlin Process: vision and scope .......................................................................................9 The Western Balkans Summits in London and Poznań ..........................................................10 The London Summit: revisiting Reconciliation and Security .................................................12 The Poznań Summit: Expanding the Agenda ...........................................................................13 3. Delivering on promises ...................................................................................................15 EU-WB6: European values and EU integration .......................................................................15 Connectivity and Interregional Cooperation as drivers of economic growth .....................................................................................................16 Security and the fight against crime and terrorism ..................................................................18 Anti-corruption pledges ..............................................................................................................19 Environment and Energy ............................................................................................................20 Research and Innovation in the service of Regional Economy ...............................................21 Civil society ...................................................................................................................................22 Reconciliation ...............................................................................................................................23 Youth Policy and Youthwork ......................................................................................................24 Building on a ‘Better Region Starting With Youth’: the work of RYCO .........................................................................................................................25 4. Conclusion and recommendations .................................................................................27 Annex 1: Research Methodology ................................................................................................30 Endnotes .........................................................................................................................................32 © The Balkan Forum, August 2020. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without full attribution. The Balkan Forum welcomes and encourages the utilisation and dissemination of the material included in this publication. Executive Summary This research looks into the progress made by the Western Balkans (WB) countries towards implementing their commitments since the WB Summits in London and Poznań held in 2018 and 2019, as part of the Berlin Process launched in 2014. It is divided into three thematic units: the first is an overview of the Berlin Process, focusing on the London and Poznań Summits and the specific pledges made by the governments on several topics within the respective declarations and chairs’ conclusions. The second part follows the progress made on the particular pledges, based on i) recent findings from research and analysis conducted on behalf of various organisations and/or governmental institutions; ii) the results of interviews; iii) the perspective of regional, local, and international media. The third part consists of recommendations, stemming from the findings of both primary and secondary research. Findings point to the direction that despite existing challenges and gaps, the Berlin Process as a whole has had a considerable positive impact on the Region. It has managed to redirect the focus of the EU back on the Western Balkans Six (WB6) countries and start a high-level dialogue on equal terms between EU-WB6 leaders, reviving the region’s declining interest in EU integration. It has placed the Region on a stable position on the EU infrastructure map, united the regional civil society under joint causes, and highlighted the role of citizens and youth in promoting dialogue and social change. It has also brought the issue of reconciliation and transitional justice back on the table, raising it as a matter not only of regional but also international importance, as emphasised within the proceedings of the 2020 Zagreb Summit. Overall, since the London Summit in 2018, the WB6 countries have been taking small, yet positive steps towards the implementation of their pledges defined in the chairs’ conclusions and Summits’ declarations. Evidence shows, however, that specific factors are slowing down or discouraging progress: . In many cases, there is political ambition, but no genuine will. During the Summits, political leaders may take pledges under international pressure but still engage in contradicting actions within their local context. Ongoing bilateral disputes, translated often into controversial measures sabotaging each other’s progress, certainly do not serve the spirit of good neighbourly relations, cooperation, and peace. Specific pledges made in the field of security and the fight against organised crime have been unrealistic in the way they were initially planned, in terms of both time and capacity. Governments may allegedly exhibit a willingness to promote reforms but lack the institutional infrastructure, the know-how or the skilled workforce to achieve a certain goal within the designated time frame. This phenomenon also applies to the field of energy. Despite the dramatic implications of pollution on citizens’ health, the WB6 countries are yet to break their coal dependency. Consequently, green energy has been among the latest priorities of the EU-WB6 dialogue, something highlighted in the Zagreb Summit. Entrenched habits, stereotypes and obsolete mentalities of ‘doing things’ get in the way of achieving progress and interregional cooperation. Ethnic and linguistic alliances, inequality, 6 BERLIN PROCESS: OVERVIEW OF THE PROGRESS BY THE SIX WESTERN BALKANS COUNTRIES SINCE LONDON AND POZNAŃ SUMMITS blame-culture and nationalist rhetoric spreading division still exist within the WB6 societies. The same can be said about corruption, one of the most pressing challenges for the region. The Berlin Process has no built-in steering and monitoring mechanism and hosting member states, ad hoc, have no authority to act in an oversight capacity. The absence of an adequate and reliable monitoring mechanism, and of legally binding provisions within the Berlin Process, make it challenging to ensure follow-up action and hold governments accountable for not fulfilling their pledges. While it is possible to a certain extent to assess the technical and economic progress made within the Berlin Process, it is extremely difficult to evaluate social change. There is a lack of clarity on how the ‘stocktaking’ of each Summit takes place and how previous Summits inform the agendas of the forthcoming Summits. Evidence shows that every Summit has either added a new topic or prioritised a certain area, reflecting the host country’s foreign policy, national interests and relevance to the Region. Without true reconciliation and dialogue, interregional cooperation - which is the cornerstone of the Berlin Process - will never be fully achieved. The above-mentioned challenges have effects on the economy of the region. Coupled with severe gaps in infrastructure, they lead to a deepening mistrust by citizens towards their national governments and state institutions, and contribute to outwards mass migration, especially among youth. The findings show that the WB6 governments need to intensify their efforts to turn their pledges into concrete action. The role of citizens and civil society is paramount in this endeavour: governments need to embrace and support people and organisations,
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